When Ohio State’s second session of the summer term gets underway on June 5, four freshmen on the men’s basketball team will arrive on campus to begin their collegiate careers. The four, who all committed during a six-day period in mid-September last year, represent the first full recruiting class in coach Chris Holtmann’s time with the Buckeyes.
Before Justin Ahrens, Jaedon LeDee, Luther Muhammad and Duane Washington Jr. all arrive on campus, The Dispatch caught up with each of them to review their senior seasons, their reasons behind picking Ohio State and their hopes to contribute as freshmen.
A four-day series begins today with Ahrens, the lone Ohioan in the class.
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Swank said that while Ahrens did occasionally handle the ball for the Tigers, he didn’t spent much time running the point during the last two seasons. In a motion offense, Ahrens was utilized by coming off of screens and often with curl or backdoor cuts. The Tigers also ran a lot of sets involving “pick-the-picker” actions with Ahrens as the first screener, which would often allow him to get open for a quick shot or drive.
It added up to what Swank said was a better-rounded season than many give Ahrens credit for.
“I think a lot of people recognize him as just a shooter,” he said. “I think he’s worked on his ball-handling, he’s worked on getting himself into the basket area and scoring a little more that way. People from around this area who get to see him on a nightly basis know he can score multiple ways, but people around the state of Ohio and other people nationally might view him as just a shooter. I think he has more capability than that.”
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Since his season ended, Ahrens said he’s worked to get stronger and improve his game to prepare for the transition to college. But he’s also made a point to reach out to friends such as Jae’Sean Tate and Luke Kennard and future teammates C.J. Jackson and Kyle Young for advice on how to handle the mental adjustment.
“I was asking them all, ‘What’s one thing you wish you would’ve done or known to improve on before you came into college?’ ” Ahrens said. “The answer I got mainly was to come in very well-conditioned and just know you’re not going to have the support you think you will. People will be supporting you, but it may feel like sometimes you’re the only one that believes in yourself. But you’ve got to believe in yourself no matter what.”
Swank praised Ahrens’ work ethic during his time at Versailles.
“He’s also probably the hardest-working kid that I’ve seen since I’ve been here,” he said. “A lot of people around this area are hard-working people that make a good, honest living doing really hard jobs. Justin does that here, too. He works extremely hard on his basketball craft, and I think that’s going to pay dividends for him when he gets to Ohio State.”
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